Boots, a UK health and beauty retailer, partnered with news publisher Trinity Mirror to launch a content marketing campaign encouraging people to "Ask the Pharmacist" and learn about the health services Boots provides beyond just products. Research showed people were unaware of pharmacists' expertise in advising on health issues. The 6-month campaign in Trinity Mirror titles featured advertorials and articles profiling Boots pharmacists and their ability to recommend medications, recognize symptoms, and provide advice. The campaign was successful in getting 22% of readers who saw it to visit their local Boots pharmacist for advice.

1.
Boots
Healthcare
&
Ask
the
Pharmacist
Background
and
Objectives
Boots
is
the
UK’s
leading
pharmacy-­‐led
health
and
beauty
retailer.
With
over
2,500
stores,
Boots
plays
a
vital
role
alongside
GPs
and
wider
community
health
services.
With
a
brand
purpose
championing
everyone’s
right
to
‘feel
good’,
Boots
wanted
to
highlight
their
active
and
credible
part
in
the
wellbeing
and
health
of
the
nation.
The
communication
objectives
set
out
by
Boots
were
specifically
to;
• Reinforce
Boots’
expertise
in
health
• Get
beyond
product-­‐led
advertising
and
focus
on
the
additional
services
Boots
provides
• Encourage
the
British
public
to
‘Ask
the
Pharmacist’
It
was
Boots’
time
to
do
something
different,
their
opportunity
to
move
away
from
their
usual
half-­‐
page
display
campaign
and
really
talk
to
their
customers
in
a
new
way.
They
already
knew
that
newsbrands
provided
the
reach
to
drive
purchase
but
they
needed
a
campaign
that
would
change
people’s
perceptions
of
the
brand
and
ultimately
their
behaviours.
The
authoritative
voice
of
an
editor
was
needed
to
do
this
so
we
needed
a
newsbrand
that
would
give
us
close
contact
with
editorial.
Trinity
Mirror
showed
us
that
their
structure
could
and
would
do
this.
Insight
Trinity
Mirror
provided
access
to
their
Modal
Britain
research
and
modal
mouth
panel.
We
conducted
research
with
these
groups
and
this
insight
showed
us
that
consumers
were
unaware
pharmacists
can
recommend
&
review
medicines,
recognise
symptoms
of
serious
conditions
&
advise
how
to
treat
conditions.
They
simply
didn’t
see
pharmacists
as
a
source
of
health
advice.
The
need
for
Boots
to
change
this
perception
also
aligned
perfectly
with
Trinity
Mirror’s
editorial
news
agenda
on
healthcare.
Trinity
Mirror
have
a
history
of
campaigning
for
the
good
of
the
NHS
and
for
the
health
and
wellbeing
of
mass
market
Britain
and
the
editorial
team
were
right
behind
this
topical
conversation.
Research
from
Local
Media
Works
also
proved
that
consumers
still
place
huge
trust
in
their
local
news:
‘Local
media
is
the
most
trusted
source
of
information’
Source:
Consumer
Catalyst,
2014.
Trinity
Mirror’s
portfolio
includes
large
regional
representation
which
enabled
us
to
tailor
messaging
specifically
to
a
region
to
allow
us
to
really
get
close
to
readers
and
drive
consumer
action
using
local
and
topical
content.
Executive
Summary
With
the
ever-­‐growing
over
reliance
on
the
NHS,
Boots
challenged
OMD
UK
to
encourage
consumers
to
‘ask
a
pharmacist’
and
re-­‐educate
the
public
on
the
additional
services
that
Boots
provides.
OMD
UK
and
Trinity
Mirror
created
a
content-­‐led
campaign
that
spoke
to
people
at
both
a
national
and
local
level
whilst
emphasising
the
role
Boots
pharmacies
play
in
communities
all
over
the
country.
The
content
led
campaign
was
a
huge
success
with
22%
of
readers
who
saw
the
campaign
directly
visiting
their
local
Boots
Pharmacist
and
asking
their
advice.

2.
The
Idea
and
Plan
A
co-­‐branded
content
partnership
was
created
exclusively
in
Trinity
Mirror
titles
(two
nationals
and
nine
regionals)
from
September
2015
to
February
2016.
The
campaign
included
front
cover
flashes,
DPS
and
single-­‐page
advertorials
and
digital
articles.
It
featured
Boots
UK
pharmacists
doing
what
doctors
do
–
campaigning,
listening
and
personalising
advice.
These
became
the
three
key
content
strands:
• Campaigning
-­‐
A
rallying
cry
to
encourage
readers
to
ask
their
pharmacist
first.
We
highlighted
topical
issues
such
as
obesity/cancer
rates
and
smoking,
creating
a
platform
to
position
Boots
UK’s
pharmacists
as
the
expert
voice.
• Listening
–
With
a
series
of
Q&A-­‐style,
ask-­‐the-­‐pharmacist
features,
we
highlighted
the
specialist
expertise
available
at
Boots
stores.
From
polls
across
the
Trinity
regional
and
national
titles,
we
found
out
about
the
things
that
people
ignore
most
and
developed
a
seasonal
conversation
calendar
on
topical
healthcare
issues,
with
weekly
content
demonstrating
how
Boots
UK
pharmacists
can
help.
• Personalising
–
via
a
series
of
seasonal
quizzes
and
online
games,
we
helped
readers
understand
the
health
impact
of
their
lifestyle
choices,
rewarding
them
with
discount
coupons
or
Boots
Advantage
points
for
sharing
on
social
media.

3.
Results
The
campaign
was
a
resounding
success.
Over
the
course
of
the
activity,
the
campaigning
spirit
of
Trinity
Mirror’s
titles,
with
their
authoritative
and
trusted
quality
editorial
content,
led
to
a
step-­‐
change
in
how
Boots
UK
was
perceived
for
health
advice.
The
awareness
of
additional
services
featured
in
content
also
rose
and
a
significant
number
of
people
went
on
to
‘ask
the
pharmacist’.
Trinity
Mirror
Quotes
“The
collaborative
approach
and
commitment
from
editorial,
commercial,
client
and
agency
meant
we
were
able
to
deliver
a
campaign
that
went
beyond
product
advertising
and
gave
Boots
UK
a
more
active
and
credible
role
in
people’s
daily
lives.
Using
our
knowledge
of
mass
market
Britain
we
have
been
able
to
target
audiences
through
emotive,
localised
and
relevant
content.”
Zoe
Harris
-­‐
Invention
&
Marketing
Director
“The
partnership
content
aligned
perfectly
with
Trinity
Mirror’s
news
agenda,
delivering
a
campaign
with
genuine
editorial
authenticity,
whilst
reinforcing
Boots
UK’s
expertise
in
health.”
Lloyd
Embley
-­‐
Editor
in
Chief
Client
Quote
“This
campaign
created
first
class,
relevant
content
that
highlighted
Boots
huge
expertise
in
health
and
also
showcased
the
wide
range
of
additional
services
we
offer.
Results
exceed
expectations
in
all
areas.
Fiona
Lakin,
Marketing
Manager,
Boots